Investigation

WASHINGTON -- Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. announced Friday that the Justice Department is investigating the practice of high-speed trading on the stock exchanges. Holder, in testimony prepared for delivery before the House Appropriations Committee, said the Justice Department is investigating the use of computer algorithms and ultra-high-speed data networks to execute trades as a possible violation of antitrust laws. Firms that use such tactics, employing physicists and other scientists to predict changes in the markets sometimes only seconds in advance, have been around for more than three decades.

A grass fire apparently sparked on the side of a freeway in Fairfield spread quickly, scorching five homes and forcing authorities to evacuate dozens of residences, police said Tuesday night. Two of the homes were destroyed by the blaze that broke out along Interstate 80 on Tuesday afternoon and three others were damaged, the Fairfield Police Department said. The homes were along Marigold Drive. As flames were pushed by winds, officers went door to door to evacuate homes and apartments and make sure no one was trapped inside.

More than 200,000 vehicles made by automaker Suzuki are the subject of a federal investigation into faulty warning lights, The Times has learned. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened a probe on June 14 to look into the Suzuki Grand Vitara SUV made from 2006 to 2011 and the Suzuki SX4 hatchback made from 2007 to 2011. The agency said it had received 128 complaints from owners who had experienced trouble with their vehicles' warning lights. This included passenger airbag off lights that would indicate the seat was empty (potentially disabling the airbag)

Newport Beach police Monday afternoon were investigating the death of a woman whose body was found under a bridge in Newport Bay. Officers responded Monday morning to a report of a woman lying face down by the bridge at East Coast Highway and Bayside Drive, the Newport Beach Police Department said. Officers determined that the woman was dead, police spokeswoman Jennifer Manzella said in a statement. On Monday afternoon, divers from the Orange County Sheriff's Department were preparing to enter the water to search for evidence, according to television news reports.

MEXICO CITY -- Mexico on Tuesday ramped up its protest over reports that the United States spied on numerous senior Mexican leaders, including the country's current and former presidents. Foreign Minister Jose Antonio Meade, speaking in Geneva, said Washington's explanations were insufficient. "Mexico insists ... there is no room for explanations," he said. "But, rather, a timely investigation with clear responsibilities and swift corrective measures. " A short time later, Interior Minister Miguel Angel Osorio Chong went before TV cameras in Mexico City to announce that Mexico would investigate its officials, in addition to expecting Washington to look into its own possible transgressions.

Peter Gleick, an internationally known Bay Area scientist, has returned to his post as president of the Pacific Institute following a three-month leave of absence prompted by his admission that he had assumed a false identity to obtain documents from a conservative think tank. In a statement released Wednesday, Pacific's board of directors said outside counsel had conducted an independent investigation that “supported what Dr. Gleick has stated publicly regarding his interaction with the Heartland Institute.

State workplace safety inspectors have opened an investigation into the death of a baggage worker at Los Angeles International Airport despite an initial report indicating he had a heart attack. Based on that report, Erika Monterroza, spokeswoman the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, said an inspection was not initially planned into the death Friday of Cesar Valenzuela, 51. However, inspectors visited LAX Monday and "for whatever reason, Cal/OSHA decided there was a need to open an investigation,” Monterroza said.

The Pentagon is investigating 10 U.S. military members in a widening probe into whether an advance team of Secret Service and military personnel hired local prostitutes or engaged in other misconduct before President Obama visited Colombia for a summit last week, U.S. officials said. The Pentagon investigation is focusing on five Special Forces Army soldiers, two Marines, two Navy personnel and one member of the Air Force, a U.S. military official said. The Navy and Air Force personnel are members of explosive detection unit, the official said,.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation said Thursday that journalist Michael Hastings, who died in an auto crash this week, was never under investigation by the agency. Hastings' stories about figures in the military and intelligence community have fueled conspiracy theories, including that he was being followed and under FBI monitoring at the time of his death. The bureau responded in a statement: "At no time was journalist Michael Hastings ever under investigation by the FBI. " The FBI's statement comes as officials with the Los Angeles Police Department said that there appears to be no foul play in the one-vehicle accident that killed Hastings . Officials still are trying to determine whether there was a mechanical problem with the car, if Hastings may have had a medical condition, or if he consumed substances that could have impaired his driving.